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My
love of insects started very early in life. My family were always interested
in using insects rather than chemicals on our fruit orchards and we have
close ties to this day with “Bugs for Bugs”, a company specialising in beneficial
insects.
Growing up on a citrus property, I was always on the prowl for unusual critters with my trusty magnifying glass. Mum and Dad still love to tell stories about their young entomologist growing up. At the age of eight I came into a kitchen full of grown-ups with the grand announcement that we had eight species of ant around our house. There are also the stories Mum wasn’t so impressed with… like breeding redback spiders and other creepy crawlies in aquariums in my bedroom. Needless to say my mother put a fairly quick stop to those activities!
I studied entomology at the University of Queensland during my Bachelor of Science degree and was fascinated by the incredible diversity of insects we have in Australia. In my third year of study I met my first glow-worm on an entomology field trip and haven’t looked back since. These amazing insects create their own light and project it out through their ‘bottoms’! You don’t get much more amazing than that! In 1999 I completed a project studying a southeast Queensland species of glow-worm that is heavily visited by tourists and received first class honours for my thesis on the management of this site. This continued into a PhD where I studied glow-worms across Australia. From that study I discovered and described five new species of glow-worm (including Arachnocampa tropica from far north Queensland!) as well as a new species of parasitoid wasp attacking the north Queensland glow-worms.
Dr Claire’s work with Bugs Ed.
I’ve always loved teaching anyone who will listen about the amazing world of insects. It is such a fascinating area to be involved in! I started presenting part-time for Bugs Ed in the Brisbane/Gold Coast region in 2005 and have always enjoyed the challenges and rewards this work offers. My favourite part of the workshop is most definitely the live insects. Seeing young students handle stick insects with such care, gentleness and respect always brings a big smile to my face!
Dr Claire’s other work
I continue to teach at the University of Queensland for a number of subjects. I give lectures on Australian insects, glow-worms, Australian frogs, lizards and snakes. I also take international students into the field to learn first hand about our incredible animal diversity.
“Planet Earth” and “Life in the Undergrowth”
In 2004 the producer of ‘Planet Earth’ approached me for information regarding filming glow-worms for an upcoming BBC documentary. This quickly turned into the role of scientific advisor for two documentaries. The two film crews I worked with were impeccably professional and working with Sir David Attenborough was a dream job!
I continue to do guest appearances on TV shows such as Totally Wild, Toasted TV (with Michelle) and Scope (including a whole episode on insects!).
Growing up on a citrus property, I was always on the prowl for unusual critters with my trusty magnifying glass. Mum and Dad still love to tell stories about their young entomologist growing up. At the age of eight I came into a kitchen full of grown-ups with the grand announcement that we had eight species of ant around our house. There are also the stories Mum wasn’t so impressed with… like breeding redback spiders and other creepy crawlies in aquariums in my bedroom. Needless to say my mother put a fairly quick stop to those activities!
I studied entomology at the University of Queensland during my Bachelor of Science degree and was fascinated by the incredible diversity of insects we have in Australia. In my third year of study I met my first glow-worm on an entomology field trip and haven’t looked back since. These amazing insects create their own light and project it out through their ‘bottoms’! You don’t get much more amazing than that! In 1999 I completed a project studying a southeast Queensland species of glow-worm that is heavily visited by tourists and received first class honours for my thesis on the management of this site. This continued into a PhD where I studied glow-worms across Australia. From that study I discovered and described five new species of glow-worm (including Arachnocampa tropica from far north Queensland!) as well as a new species of parasitoid wasp attacking the north Queensland glow-worms.
Dr Claire’s work with Bugs Ed.
I’ve always loved teaching anyone who will listen about the amazing world of insects. It is such a fascinating area to be involved in! I started presenting part-time for Bugs Ed in the Brisbane/Gold Coast region in 2005 and have always enjoyed the challenges and rewards this work offers. My favourite part of the workshop is most definitely the live insects. Seeing young students handle stick insects with such care, gentleness and respect always brings a big smile to my face!
Dr Claire’s other work
I continue to teach at the University of Queensland for a number of subjects. I give lectures on Australian insects, glow-worms, Australian frogs, lizards and snakes. I also take international students into the field to learn first hand about our incredible animal diversity.
“Planet Earth” and “Life in the Undergrowth”
In 2004 the producer of ‘Planet Earth’ approached me for information regarding filming glow-worms for an upcoming BBC documentary. This quickly turned into the role of scientific advisor for two documentaries. The two film crews I worked with were impeccably professional and working with Sir David Attenborough was a dream job!
I continue to do guest appearances on TV shows such as Totally Wild, Toasted TV (with Michelle) and Scope (including a whole episode on insects!).
